Chicks With Dicks

...woman attracted to gay men? I feel more like a gay man trapped in a woman’s body than I feel like a woman. Trapped Why wait for your next life? Instead of hoping you come back as a gay man, why not explore becoming a gay man in this life? “The thing about being a trans person,” female-to-male (FTM) transsexual Spencer Bergstedt told me, “is this: You are really what you feel yourself to be. If you were born female-bodied and feel yourself to be a man, you’re a man; if born male-bodied and feel yourself to be a woman, you’re a woman.” Bergstedt, an attorney, the author of Translegalities, a legal how-to guide for trans people (available at www.spencelaw.com). “If you indeed feel yourself to be a gay man, then by all means explore the possibility of transition from female to male,” Bergstedt said. “Many FTMs identify as gay, and find that, with or without genital surgery, they can and do have meaningful, as well as tawdry, relationships with non-trans gay men.” Loren Cameron is the FTM author of Body Alchemy: Transsexual Portraits (Cleis Press), which documents his own transformation. Cameron knows lots of FTMs who identify as gay and bisexual, and most have found gay and bisexual male lovers. “They report that their lovers are quite happy with their enlarged and lovely clit-penises,” Cameron said. “This is not to say that finding partners is not difficult, but with a little self-confidence and positive sexuality, everything is possible.” While it’s true male-to-female (MTF) transsexuals can get pretty decent pussy these days (docs hollow out the cock, then pull the shaft inside the body, turning it inside-out and creating a pretty functional vaginal canal), mock cocks–a.k.a. phalloplasties–are not only expensive, they’re also not all that realistic-looking or functional. “But one pretty amazing thing that happens for many FTMs upon transitioning,” Bergstedt said, “is that they discover having a penis of a certain size or shape isn’t all that important anymore. It isn’t the penis that defines them as men. What is important is that their sex partners relate to them as men.” If a guy intentionally has sex with a “chick with a dick,” does that make him gay? Or does this fall under the umbrella of harmless hetero “experimentation”? By the way, I am straight. Honest! Messed Around “No, ‘intentionally’ having sex with a ‘chick with a dick’ doesn’t make you gay,” said Kate Bornstein, a male-to-female transsexual and author of the terrific book Gender Outlaw: On Men, Women, and the Rest of Us and, more recently, My Gender Workbook: How to Become a Real Man, a Real Woman, the Real You, or Something Else Entirely (both from Routledge Press). “It means he has a leaning toward people who have a mix going on, gender-wise, and he leans toward a very specific mix. It might make him a transhag or a transfag, but not a gay man.” Bornstein felt that you should worry less about how you’re perceived by others, and more about your own happiness. “Gay men want to fuck other gay men, period,” Bornstein added. “Is a chick with a dick a gay man? No.” So, what is a guy who’s into chicks with dicks? “He might be a queer het man,” said Bornstein. “That’s a good category for straight men who want to explore their options. That’s what queer is all about: it allows room for exploration of desire and identity. If this man is attracted to a chick with a dick, does it make him a gay man? No. Does it make him queer? Yes. Is he any less het? No. Am I speaking in contradictions? Yes.” I have been with my girlfriend for seven months now. This relationship has been the best I’ve ever had. I love her so much. There is one problem, though. I’ve been living a lie. My girlfriend thinks I’m a guy, and I am not a guy. I am really a female. I’m so confused, because I don’t know what to do. I really love her, and I wish I was a guy so I could spend the rest of my life with this woman. I hate myself for doing this to her. She always talks about us having kids and getting married as soon as we complete our last year of college at the UW. Give me some advice and criticism. I know I deserve it. Sincerely Stupid I shared your question with all three of this week’s guest experts. “Tell her the truth,” advised Bergstedt. “Your girlfriend deserves to know, and you deserve to live your life without secrets. Her reaction may surprise you, and you may still get to spend the rest of your days with her.” “Get honest fast,” said Cameron. “If you love your girlfriend that much, tell her now. If the feelings are mutual, she may stick around. Look into getting information about transgender issues, and try and find some peer counseling from other transgenders in your area, if ‘gender discontent’ is what you’re experiencing. If that’s not the case, then I would recommend looking at coming to terms with being a lesbian, and find support for that.” “You are sincerely stupid,” said Bornstein, “but you’re not a bad person. You were afraid to say things for fear of losing love, and who hasn’t felt that? Now you have to make it right. Get a mediator, someone you both trust, and sit down with this person. Then say, ‘I’ve got something to tell you.’ It’s your job to patch things up as best you can, the way any human being would patch it up with a lover.” For more information regarding transgenderism, both FTM and MTF, contact FTM International at 1360 Mission St., Suite 200, San Francisco CA 94103. Call 415-553-5987, or e-mail TSTGMen@aol.com. While we’re on the trans subject: Evergreen College in Olympia hosts the First Annual Northwest Transgender Film Festival on Saturday, May 22. An all-day event featuring films and speakers, the festival begins at 10 a.m. and goes until midnight. For more info, call 360-866-6000 ext. 6544.!-- Dingbat -- letters@savagelove.net